Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	behold_v	glory_n	lord_n	7,688	5	4.9645	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A89567	Gods master-piece. A sermon tending to manifest Gods glorious appearing in the building up of Zion: preached to the Right Honourable the House of Peers, in the Abbey Church of Westminster, March 26. 1645. Being the day of the monthly publike fast, / by Stephen Marshall, B.D. minister of Gods Word, at Finching-field in Essex. Published by order of the House of Peeres.	Marshall, Stephen, 1594?-1655.	1645 (1645)	Wing M756; Thomason E279_2; ESTC R200025	37,316	57

GODS MASTER-PIECE A SERMON Tending to manifest Gods glorious appearing in the building up of Zion PREACHED To the Right Honourable the House of Peers in the Abbey Church of Westminster March 26. 1645. Being the day of the Monthly publike Fast BY Stephen Marshall B. D. Minister of Gods Word at Finching-field in Essex Published by Order of the House of Peeres Esa. 60. 14. They shall call thee the City of the Lord the Zion of the Holy One of Israel Psal. 68. 24. They have seen thy goings O God the goings of my God my King in the Sanctuary LONDON Printed by Richard Cotes for Stephen Bowtell and are to be sold at the signe of the Bible in Popes-head Alley 1645. To the Right HONOVRABLE THE House of Peeres Assembled in PARLIAMENT Right Honourable THis plain Sermon when preached was entertained by Your Lordships with singular attention and now comes to publike view by Your command I shall not presume now to make another tryall of Your patience by a long Epistle as I did then in a long Sermon I onely present it unto You and since You please to have it so to the eye of the World humbly beseeching the Lord to accompany it with his blessing that all who read it especially Your Lordships may in it behold as in a Glasse the Glorie of the Lord and be changed into the same Image by the Spirit of the Lord thatso they may account it their greatest Honour to promote this Worke to beautifie the place of Gods Sanctuary and to make the place of his feet glorious So prayeth Your unworthy Servant Stephen Marshall A SERMON PREACHED To the Right Honourable the House of LORDS at the Monethly Fast March 26. 1645. PSALM 102. 16 17. When the Lord shall build up Zion hee shall appeare in his glory hee will regard the Prayer of the destitute and not despise their prayer I Have chosen a Text Right Honourable and Beloved which is neither difficult in it self nor which is the lot of many plain Texts made to seem obscure by the variety of glosses and interpretations put upon it There is a generall agreement concerning the scope and meaning of the Spirit of God in this Psalm some little difference is found amongst Interpreters concerning the time and the Pen-man of it Some conceiving it was about the time when the Jews were stopt and interrupted in the works of building the Temple by their ill neighbours but most doe agree that the time was about the end of the seventy years captivity when God had raised up the spirits of the Prophets to encourage the people to expect this mercy according to that of Esay 40. Comfort yee comfort ye my people saith the Lord speak ye comfortably to Hierusalem and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished and also stirred up the spirits of the people to pray to the Lord to accomplish his good word for their returne according to that of Jer. 29. Then shall yee call upon mee and I will hearken unto you And as for the Penman of it who ever it was for that is altogether unknown most certain it is that hee neither penn'd nor spake these things in his own name or of his own condition but in the name of the whole Church of God like another Jeremy writing a book of Lamentations for the desolations of Zion bemoaning them before the Lord and most earnestly begging mercy and deliverance In the 11 first Verses you may behold the afflicted Church of God sitting alone like a desolate widow with her tears on her cheeks her belly cleaving to the dust her heart smitten and withered like grasse eating ashes for bread mingling her drink with weeping as a Pelican in the wildernesse as an Owl in the desart her enemies many and raging against her shee looking round about and all her Lovers and friends departed from her enquiring after succour and comfort and it is farre removed Behold to what a sad condition the sinnes of Gods own people doe oft times bring them and that is the first part of the Psalme But in this dark and tempestuous night of calamity and desolation this afflicted soul with Jonah in the whales belly with weeds-wrapped about his head looks up to God begins to remember those everlasting mercies that may bee found in the Lord Jehovah and presently there darts in a beam as from a new created Statre of light and comfort in the 12 and 13 Verse which shines into the soule and inables this poore desolate creature to conclude very comfortably that that God who had broken her would yet again heal her that his wrath should not alwayes continue but he would return and revive and quicken them after all the days wherin he had afflicted them and so suddenly begins to renew its strength and mount up with wings of comfort as an Eagle And from the 12 Verse to the end of the Psalme after all this sad lamentation there is a comfortable propheticall story of all the good that God did mean to doe fot this afflicted Church which now lay in the dust and rubble wherein there are three remarkable things The first is A strong confident propheticall conclusion that the deliverance of Gods Church was nigh at hand in these words Thou shalt arise and have mercy upon Zion for the time to deliver her yea the set time is come that 's her conclusion that it must of necessity be the Lord was resolved speedily to raise them out of their low condition Secondly you have the Argument which satisfied this afflicted desolate soul that the time of Zions deliverance was at hand because all Gods servants took pleasure in the dust of it and pityed the very stones and the rubbish of it their hearts were deeply humbled for Zions miseries they had set themselves earnestly to pray to the Lord to give him no rest night nor day till hee had set it up and this spirit of prayer powred out upon the Church was to her as sure a token of approaching deliverance as the day star is a token of an approaching morning That is the second The third part of this prophecy is the use or fruit which he doth foretell should be made of this great work of Gods raising and building up of Zion which is very excellent partly the use that the rest of the Nations of the world should make of it all the heathen should stand and wonder at it and praise Gods name for it yea their Kings even all the Kings should behold the glory of the Lord and come in and worship and honour him who had wrought such a great work as the raising Zion out of the dust and then for the Church the people that are created on purpose to bee for Gods glory it should bee written for them from generation to generation that they and all their posterities should perpetually love and serve the Lord who did thus remember his people in their low condition Now

should hinder these men from the work the Emperour writes back to this purpose You Tatnai and Shethar-boznai keep far from them meddle not with them I make a decree that whosoever he be that offers to hinder this work his house be pulled downe and timber be taken downe and set up for a gallowes and himself hanged thereon and the Goa that hath caused his name to dwell there root out from the face of the earth all Kings and Princes that offer to alter this work or destroy this house Here was a brave speech of a Heathen of a Pagan Emperour the like must be said to these men whoever offers to hinder the building of Gods house the reformation of the Church the decree of the great King will reach them it is ratified in heaven the God that hath caused his name to dwell in the Church will cut off all Kings and Princes Lords and Ladies rich and poore and whosoever dare offer to hinder the building of it But who is he or where is he that in his heart dare think such a thing I tell you their number is numberlesse God grant there be none such present I le name some of them not onely the Antichristian Prelaticall Malignant party who are in armes against us and endevour with all their power and cunning to destroy us and so cause this work to cease but even all who secretly affect and assist them or stand as Neuters and hang off when this work of God is in hand and like the Nobles of Tekoah refuse to put their shoulders to the work are all enemies to it and doe dash against this rock and all whose wicked lives are contrary to it all whose ill examples discourage and lye like stumbling-blocks in the way who refuse to be hewen and framed and laid like living stones into the building of God who are unwilling to beare Christs yoke who by counsels by power or otherwise hinder the spreading of the Gospel which is the rod of his power and the great engine whereby he reares the Church and subdues his enemies or that have ill will to the preaching of it all that spread corrupt Doctrines licentious opinions who seek to rend and divide the people of God all you and your works are enemies to it whatsoever you think of your selves and whosoever you are whether great or small you all kick against pricks and beleeve it you must all come under the curse of it you are all wretched and miserable creatures to oppose that work which must prosper and to stumble at that stone which will fall upon you and grind you to powder you must all perish who have ill will at Zion not onely your weapons must be unprosperous which are forged against it but this is the plague wherewith the Lord will smite you your flesh must consume away your eyes rot in their holes your tongues consume away in your mouths and to conclude your misery you must all be slaine before his face and cast into a Lake burning with fire and brimstone Repent therefore of this not onely your folly but madnesse which now is your shame and is like to prove your confusion Doth the Lord appeare in his glory when he builds up Zion then I beseech you all give God the glory of his worke you can never grieve a man more then to neglect him in that which he makes his glory to sleight or throw aside a Work-mans master-peece as if it were a toy is taken very heinously among men now I tell you that although every work of God is excellent and his praise may be found in it the works of the Lord are all great and worthy to be had in remembrance yet this work of building the Church is his Master-peece every pin every stone from the foundation to the cap-stone is so enameld and checkerd with Rubies Saphires Emeralds Chrysolites Carbuncles with all manner of precious stones such admirable curious workman-ship that Ahabs Ivory Palace and Solomons Cedar house the Pyramids of Egypt all humane Artifices yea all the rarities and secrets of nature have no glory when compared with the glory of this one work of Christs gathering building protecting and beautifying of Zion this you would soon acknowledge if you could look upon it with spirituall discerning eyes get therefore your Bibles and the Stories of the Church and read them and in reading labour to the utmost to understand this peece of Gods work consider how ever since he hath had a Church upon earth what a strange way he hath took to governe it from what small beginnings he hath multiplied it from what dead low ebbes he hath brought it by what unlikely instruments he hath built it what potent enemies he hath subdued before it with what rare priviledges he hath enriched it by what unthought of wayes and providences he hath done good it ponder these things and you can hardly read one Paragraph of the Story of Gods Church but you must with admiration cry out This is the Lords doing and it is wonderfull in my eyes O that there were in us such a heart that could be thus raised up thus inlightned as to see nothing excellent but onely Gods going in the Sanctuary they have seen the goings of my God and King in the Sanctuary such an heart would be according to Gods own heart a spirit which the Lord would delight in more especially study and behold the glory of this last peece of his work this new edition of the Church which he is now about to set forth wherein I hope he will vouchsafe to make his Churches even amongst us a praise in the earth O read over the admirable dealings of God towards us in these foure or five last yeares I am assured it will be the wonderment of succeeding generations God will have it written by one hand or other and when these things shall be told they will be wondred at indeed when it shall be written what a low ebbe we were at how we were tantum non swallowed with Popery Prelacy Superstition Arminianisme Tyranny Oppression all things concurring to undoe us and then the Lord broke those Iron yokes and hath called this Parliament which after he hath sitted and tried and humbled he hath put upon the repairing of his Church and building the walls of his City in a troublesome time when they build with the Trowell in one hand and the Sword in another when huge potent Enemies are risen up to destroy them and yet he carries on this work exercising and manifesting such rare wisdome in the midst of our folly such admirable power in the midst of our weaknesse such holinesse in the midst of our corruptions such love in the midst of our unworthinesse such justice to our enemies in the midst of their pride carries it on after such a manner that they who read these things must stand amazed and cry out O how wonderfull are thy doings O

and other evill Neighbours in the type and literall sense but especially from Satan death and Hell in the spirituall sense to pardon them call them in and build them upon himselfe the rock against which the gates of hell should never prevaile This was the work which occasioned him thus to put on his glorious apparell Many other Scriptures speak the same Exodus 15. 1. When God did deliver his Church out of Egypt hee triumphed gloriously But I forbeare because the third branch will cleare it all more fully and that is Thirdly to discover How and wherein the Lord doth appeare in glory when hee builds up his Church and for this I shall lay down this one conclusion and indevour to make it good to you in the following Discourse That although all the workes of God are great and glorious and worthy to bee sought into by all his people there is not the least atome the least Ant but proves this quaelibet herba every little herbe but shews it to bee Gods workmanship Psalm 19. 12. The heavens declare his glory and the firmament shewes his handy work Yet this work of gathering and building of the Church of Christ is a work which is carryed in a quite differing straine and way from all other workes which ever the Lord puts his own hand to Look upon all his other workes and you shall seldome finde that the work goes beyond what the matter and the instruments may promise and within the compasse and fadome of second causes may you finde the summe of all that doth appeare in any other work of Gods hands so that although every thing that is done may truely bee said to bee the Lords and to bee wrought if I may speak with reverence in his shop yet because God carries them on by a concatenation and subordination of second causes every one working according to their nature though secretly carryed by his own hand these workes of God may truely bee said to bee wrought by Gods servants by his apprentises and inferiour servants but the whole carriage of the businesse of the Church of God is reserved for Gods owne hand as his Master peece carryed in such a way as none may lay any claime to have any thing to do in it unlesse he can challenge to have the perfections of Jehovah in him and this I am certaine you 'l acknowledge if you please to lend me your reverent attention while I cleare these foure things unto you First the Materials out of which the Lord uses to build his Church Secondly the Instruments by which hee uses to build it Thirdly the Time when hee doth it And Fourthly and chiefly the Manner how hee doth it For the first 1. For the Materialls out of which this stately peece is to bee erected you know that in all other buildings if the work bee to bee a glorious work the materials are the excellentest that can be found and Mercury must not be made of common wood When Solomon meanes to build a Temple it must be with Cedar Trees over-layed with Gold If Noah be to build an Arke it shall be of Gophir wood firme and strong substantiall Timber No man would imagine that a stately fabrick should be erected out of rotten Willowes and broken stickes and refuse chips c. But now the materials out of which God builds the Church are the very refuse out of as arrant refuse stuff as is in all the world is this goodly building erected Satans kingdome the damned in Hell that cursed state of darknesse is not built out of worser stuffe then the Kingdome of Christ is take the materials as they are when he first findes them When God tooke the Nation of the Jewes to be his people some people say they were the ill-favouredst people in all the world a loathsome people to looke upon but it is certaine they were as crosse and perverse in their spirits as any living the Lord told them often that they were the unworthiest of all Nations when he chose them bids them never thinke that they were chose out to be his before the rest of the world for any thing that was in them for he protested there was nothing to allure him And for the Church which Christ now ownes and builds the same things are manifest In the 11 of Isaiah you have a Prophesie of Christs Church what they are by nature till his grace change them Lions and Tigers and Bears and Wolves and Cockatrices and Aspes and such kinde of Vermine are the creatures out of which Christ Jesus chooses and makes up his Flock of Sheep Read Pauls Epistles and you will finde that all the Saints the excellentest of the earth whom Christ thought not himselfe and all his glory too good for were Mancipia Satanae Bond-flaves and Hell-hounds going on in their wicked wayes A description you have in the 16 of Ezekiel that fits every one of them where the Lord tells the Church what kinde of people they were when he fell in love with them their Navell not cut cast out in the day of their birth lying in their mothers bloud no eye to pitty her nor no hand to doe her any friendly office and when he past by her in that pickle then did he fall in love with her and spread the skirt of his garment over her And if you take another place of Scripture to see what kinde of Spouse he had Aholah and Aholibah two Whores were the Spouses that he did chuse plainly shewing to us that this glorious work that which all eternity shall give honour to him for that the materials out of which it is built are as bad as any are who goe to Hell and destruction And this is one great part of a demonstration to let you see that when God doth such a work as this is he doth appeare in his glory It must needs be an excellent Work-man who can raise so glorious a peece out of such base stuffe Secondly and by what Instruments doe you thinke the Lord doth build it and what are their Tooles who are his Work-men you 'll wonder by that time I have told you a little about them God hath sometimes strong Cities of his enemies to overthrow from which he meanes to rescue his people and then the Armies which he brings to doe it are Rams hornes Wormes and Lice and Mice and Frogs and Locusts and Caterpillars c. by such as these doth the Lord sometimes overthrow whole Kingdomes when he pleaseth to breake all their Iron barres asunder to fetch his poore captived people from amongst them and when in a spirituall way he sends his Instruments to subdue people unto him he goes not to the Schooles to finde out the learned and excellent parted men but a few Fisher-men poore despicable men brought up in no Arts or Learning shall be the Champions who shall goe and subdue the great and the wise men of the world

and out of this he looks for no other glory then from a Cabul a land of dirt or a shepheards cottage or a goard which springs up in a night and withers in a day but this peece he sets up for a higher end to be the eternall mansion of his holinesse and honour this is his Metropolis his Temple his house where his fire and furnace is his Court his glorious high Throne and therefore his glory is much concerned in this work when Nebuchadnezzar would have a City for the honour of his kingdome and the glory of his Majesty he will make it a stately peece Solomon made all his Kingdome very rich and glorious but he made his Court and especially his Throne another manner of thing so stately that the like was not to be seen in any other kingdome and therefore no wonder though he appeare in his glory in building up of that which we may boldly say must one day be made as glorious as his wisdome can contrive and his power bring to passe Having thus plainly opened and proved this excellent Doctrine give me leave in the Application to present you with some matter first of Joy and consolation secondly of Reproof and Terrour thirdly of Exhortation and Duty Here is a further excellent encouragement and strengthening of our comfort in that which I touched before viz. an assurance that this work must goe on doe all the world what they can they can never hinder the building up of Gods Church because God hath so set his heart upon it that for the doing thereof he hath cloathed himselfe with his glory and girded himselfe with strength and will he be hindred in it though all the Nations of the world should rise up against him to hinder it It is true the gates of Hell doe alwayes appeare with all their wisdome and strength against it but what of that it is his glory to build it and can we imagine that any shall be able to spoil him of his glory that any can pull downe what he will build or root up his pleasant plant when he hath called it his house of glory which he will glorifie that poore wormes shall be able to defile or deface it No no this work must be carried on feare it not He hath evidently begun it among our selves and we are often discouraged in it there is yet much to be done much rubbish still remaines to be carried out and we are very low our estates wasted the builders discouraged their hands weakned but not by might or an Army but by my Spirit saith the Lord must this work proceed and then what art thou O great mountain thou great mountain of Popery Prelacy superstition oppression division heresie schism what art thou before my servants the builders thou shalt flow down thou shalt be made a plaine Be strong therefore ye Nobles and servants of God whose hearts are set upon this work you shall notwithstanding all opposition see the cap-stone set upon the head of it and cry Grace Grace unto it The Lord useth an excellent similitude in Esay 31. 4. when he came downe to rescue his people and they were discouraged just as we are now with a multitude of oppositions he compares himselfe to a Lion or a young Lion that hath caught his prey when the multitude of shepheards are called out against him he scornes to mend his pace or be afraid of their voice So will the Lord of Hosts doe in building of Zion let all the world rise up against this work and he scornes to draw back from them or be afraid of the shepheards or their dogges he can worry them and all their dogs to peeces And therefore I beseech you who are engaged in this great worke of God when any discouragements fall out before you remember the errand that God bids Hezekiah send to Senacharib who came with some two or 300000 fighting men and sent him a very proud scornfull and threatning message tell him said God the daughter of Zion sits and laughes at him shakes her head and scornes him bids him doe his worst and well she might for these proud mountaines soone flowed downe for in in one night one of God servants killed 180000 e●en all his Captaines and great men were all killed so say thou when great difficulties rise up and thou beginnest to think Lord by whom shall Jacob arise for he is small our money failes us our Trade is gone yea in many places Ordinances faile us mens hearts are discouraged what shall we doe say the Lord hath put on his glorious apparell and he must and will carry on this work he will never undergoe that reproach This man began to build and was not able to make an end But why doth he then so delay it alas it is worse with us then it was two or three yeares agoe the summer is past the harvest is come and yet we are not delivered much bloud is shed the enemy is yet strong and potent our hearts faile our instruments decay and yet the worke hangs if God did appeare in his glory why would it come on thus heavily I answere the Lord is a God of judgment he is a wise God he knowes the fittest time That he doth delay is neither because he is weary of the work or because he is not able to doe it or because the enemy is strong No no the Holy One of Israel never fainted neither is he weary but it is onely because his best time is not yet come he will it may be more fit the enemies for destruction and us for deliverance it may be he will hunt us yet more from all our self-confidence and lay us low but in the fittest and best time of all this work must proceed no weapon can prosper that is forged against it the Lord will carry it on and finish it whether we live to see it it 's no matter if we dye and goe to heaven we are well enough let us serve God in our generation in this work which himselfe will owne in all generations Is it the Lords glory to build up Zion then miserable and wretched and cursed are all they that are the enemies of Zion who would pull Zion downe who with the children of Edom who cry Downe with it downe with it even to the very foundation who with Sanballat and Tobiah doe strive all they can to keep it low to hinder the Work-men that they may not carry it on what doe you think will become of these I le tell you how you shall guesse you shall finde in the sixth of Ezra when a great Emperour of Persia came to understand a decree of Cyrus wherein it appeared he was stirred up of God to build his house at Hierusalem he wrote a Letter to Tatnai and Shethar-boznai and many others who were enemies to the Jewes and had writ to the Emperour to know whether they